Peacock Flock Review # 18 – Secondhand Charm

In a secluded village, magic sparkles on the edges of the forest. There, a young girl named Evie possesses unusually strong powers as a healer. A gypsy’s charms—no more than trinkets when worn by others—are remarkably potent when Evie ties them around her neck. Her talents, and charms, have not escaped the notice of the shy stonemason’s apprentice. But Evie wants more than a quiet village and the boy next-door. When the young king’s carriage arrives one day, and his footman has fallen ill, Evie might just get her chance after all . . .

Berry’s debut novel garnered glowing reviews and strong sales—and now she’s done it again with a beautifully woven tale to keep all readers, young and old, absolutely charmed.

Review:

We really did like this world. And when the book ended we wanted to stay in the world which was a good sign, however the plot left more to be desired. It took a while for things to happen. And the romance aspect could’ve been delved into more (despite the fact that the book is 352 pages. Some slower stuff needed to be taken out and more romance put in). We wanted Evie to grow more as a character as the book progressed. We also got tired of how many misunderstandings Evie and Aidan had. Yes people aren’t perfect and therefore characters shouldn’t be either, but it just seemed to be a constant obstacle and got a little old. We have to admit though this world was definitely original! We loved who Evie was and the “serpentina” concept. But it needed to happen earlier in the novel so that we could learn more about it. All in all a good light read and we may or may not read it again.

Comment Policy

Great critical discourse and debate is awesome, encouraged even. But comments that have personal attacks, inappropriate language, disrespectful behaviour or excessive self-promotion will be cut faster than you can say Quidditch.
~Danielle